Akira Yaegashi
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is a Japanese former
professional boxer Professional boxing, or prizefighting, is regulated, sanctioned boxing. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse that is divided between the boxers as determined by contract. Most professional fights are supervised by a regulatory auth ...
who competed from 2005 to 2019. He is a three-weight world champion, having held the
World Boxing Association The World Boxing Association (WBA), formerly known as the National Boxing Association (NBA), is an international professional boxing organization based in Panama. The WBA awards its world championship title at the professional level. Founded ...
(WBA)
mini-flyweight Mini flyweight, also known as paperweight, minimumweight, strawweight, or super atomweight, is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing In professional boxing, boxers in the minimumweight division may weigh no more than . This is a relatively new ...
title from 2011 to 2012, the
World Boxing Council The World Boxing Council (WBC) is an international professional boxing organization. It is among the four major organizations which sanction professional boxing bouts, alongside the World Boxing Association (WBA), International Boxing Federation ...
(WBC) and ''
Ring magazine ''The Ring'' (often called ''The Ring'' magazine or ''Ring'' magazine) is an American boxing magazine that was first published in 1922 as a boxing and wrestling magazine. As the sporting legitimacy of professional wrestling came more into questio ...
''
flyweight Flyweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Flyweight is a class in boxing which includes fighters weighing up to and including 51 kg (112 lb) for a title fight. Professional boxing The flyweight division was the last of boxin ...
titles from 2013 to 2014, and the
International Boxing Federation The International Boxing Federation (IBF) is one of four major organizations recognized by the International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF) which sanctions professional boxing bouts. The others are the World Boxing Association (WBA), World Boxing C ...
(IBF) light-flyweight title from 2015 to 2016. He is an alumnus of the
Takushoku University Takushoku University (拓殖 大学; ''Takushoku Daigaku'', abbreviated as 拓大 ''Takudai'') is a private university in Tokyo, Japan. It was founded in 1900 by Prince (title for a Duke at that time) Taro Katsura (1848–1913).


Professional career

Yaegashi finished his amateur career with a record of 56–14 after winning the Inter-High School Championship and the
National Sports Festival of Japan The is the national premier sports event of Japan. It consists of three stages. The skating and ice hockey stage takes place in January, the skiing stage takes place in February, and the main Autumn tournament takes place in September and Octob ...
. His professional debut was at the
Yokohama Cultural Gymnasium , abbreviated to , was an indoor sports arena located in Naka-ku, Yokohama, Japan. The capacity of the arena is 5,000 people and was opened in 1962. It is a five-minute walk from the closest subway station, Kannai Station, on the JR/ Yokoha ...
in March 2005. He won the vacant
OPBF The Oriental and Pacific Boxing Federation (OPBF) is a professional boxing organization that sanctions title fights in the Asian and Pacific region. History Oriental boxing started in the Philippines in 1946 after the Spanish-American War. Whi ...
mini-flyweight Mini flyweight, also known as paperweight, minimumweight, strawweight, or super atomweight, is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing In professional boxing, boxers in the minimumweight division may weigh no more than . This is a relatively new ...
title there via a fifth-round technical knockout in April 2006 and defended the title once before vacating it. In his first world title shot against the WBC mini-flyweight champion Eagle Kyowa at the
Pacifico Yokohama Pacifico Yokohama (パシフィコ横浜, ''Pashifiko Yokohama''), officially known as , is a convention center, convention and exhibition center in Nishi-ku, Yokohama, Nishi-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, Kanagawa, Japan. The center located ...
in June 2007, Yaegashi lost for the first time by a wide points margin after suffering a broken
TMJ In anatomy, the temporomandibular joints (TMJ) are the two joints connecting the jawbone to the skull. It is a bilateral synovial articulation between the temporal bone of the skull above and the condylar process of mandible below; it is from ...
in two places due to an accidental headbutt in the second round. After a nearly eleven-month absence from the ring, Yaegashi restarted his career, but lost in the semi-final match of the annual Japanese title elimination tournament nicknamed "The Strongest in Korakuen" at the
Korakuen Hall is a sports arena in Bunkyo, Tokyo, Japan, which has hosted boxing, professional wrestling, kickboxing, mixed martial arts and Lethwei matches. History On April 16, 1962, the Korakuen Hall was officially opened with a capacity of approximat ...
in
Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...
in July 2008. It was in June 2009 that Yaegashi won the vacant Japanese mini-flyweight title at the IMP Hall in
Osaka is a Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the List of cities in Japan, third-most populous city in J ...
. He defended the title three times before returning it. Yaegashi won the WBA mini-flyweight title in his second world title shot against Thai's Pornsawan Porpramook via a tenth-round technical knockout at the Korakuen Hall on October 24, 2011. It was a very tough fight. Before the final round began, Yaegashi's manager Ohashi said to him "Come back for your son". The fight earned accolades from international media, winning Fight of the Year honors from
ESPN.com ESPN.com is the official website of ESPN. It is owned by ESPN Internet Ventures, a division of ESPN Inc. History Since launching in April 1995 as ESPNET.SportsZone.com (ESPNET SportsZone), the website has developed numerous sections including ...
and BoxingScene.com, as well as the WBA's award for Most Dramatic Fight of 2011. On June 20, 2012, in a match that marked the first time two Japanese fighters had met to unify world titles, he lost to the WBC champion
Kazuto Ioka is a Japanese professional boxer who held the unified WBA and WBC mini-flyweight titles between 2011 and 2012, the WBA (Regular) light-flyweight title from 2012 to 2014, the WBA flyweight title from 2016 to 2017, having previously held the WB ...
via a unanimous decision at the Bodymaker Colosseum. When asked whether the result would have been different unless he got swollen eyes, Yaegashi said "We should not think about it. There is no if's in boxing". The day after the fight, Ioka decided to move up a weight division. So, Yaegashi's team hope the rematch with Ioka in a higher division as their second unification bout. First, Yaegashi aims to win a world championship again. Yaegashi returned to the ring in a light-flyweight bout at the Korakuen Hall on January 5, 2013, to knock out Saenmuangloei Kokietgym in the ninth round. Yaegashi became a two-weight class champion when he defeated defending WBC and ''The Ring'' flyweight champion,
Toshiyuki Igarashi is a Japanese boxer and a former WBC, ''The Ring'' and Lineal Flyweight World Champion. Amateur career He competed for his native country at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece, where he was stopped in the first round of the men's li ...
in a unanimous decision on April 8, 2013, in Tokyo, Japan. On 12 August 2013, Yaegashi successfully defended his title by defeating Mexican fighter Oscar Blanquet. Yaegashi floored Blanquet in the 8th round on his way to a points victory. Yaegashi became a three-weight world champion after defeating IBF light-flyweight champion Javier Mendoza via unanimous decision.


Professional boxing record


Exhibition boxing record


Titles in boxing


Major world titles

* WBA minimumweight champion (105 lbs) * IBF light flyweight champion (108 lbs) *
WBC flyweight champion This is a list of world flyweight boxing champions, as recognized by the four major sanctioning organizations in boxing: * The World Boxing Association (WBA), established in 1921 as the National Boxing Association (NBA). The WBA often recognize up ...
(112 lbs)


''The Ring'' magazine titles

* ''The Ring'' flyweight champion (112 lbs)


Regional/International titles

*
OPBF The Oriental and Pacific Boxing Federation (OPBF) is a professional boxing organization that sanctions title fights in the Asian and Pacific region. History Oriental boxing started in the Philippines in 1946 after the Spanish-American War. Whi ...
minimumweight Mini flyweight, also known as paperweight, minimumweight, strawweight, or super atomweight, is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing In professional boxing, boxers in the minimumweight division may weigh no more than . This is a relatively new ...
champion (105 lbs) *
Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...
minimumweight champion (105 lbs)


Recognitions

*2011
ESPN.com ESPN.com is the official website of ESPN. It is owned by ESPN Internet Ventures, a division of ESPN Inc. History Since launching in April 1995 as ESPNET.SportsZone.com (ESPNET SportsZone), the website has developed numerous sections including ...
Fight of the Year *2011 BoxingScene.com Fight of the Year *2011 WBA Most Dramatic Fight


See also

*
List of Mini-flyweight boxing champions This is a list of world mini-flyweight boxing champions (also known as minimumweight or strawweight), as recognized by the four major sanctioning organizations in boxing: * The World Boxing Association (WBA), established in 1921 as the National Bo ...
*
List of light-flyweight boxing champions This is a list of world light-flyweight boxing champions (also known as junior-flyweight), as recognized by the four major sanctioning organizations in boxing: * The World Boxing Association (WBA), established in 1921 as the National Boxing Assoc ...
*
List of flyweight boxing champions This is a list of world flyweight boxing champions, as recognized by the four major sanctioning organizations in boxing: * The World Boxing Association (WBA), established in 1921 as the National Boxing Association (NBA). The WBA often recognize up ...
*
List of boxing triple champions In boxing, a triple champion is a boxer who has won world titles in three weight classes. For most of the 20th century it was a remarkable and rare achievement accomplished by only a handful of fighters. Beginning in the 1970s, triple champions h ...
*
List of Japanese boxing world champions This is a list of Japanese boxing world champions who have won major world titles from the "Big four" Sports governing body, governing bodies in professional boxing namely the World Boxing Association (WBA), World Boxing Council (WBC), Internation ...
*
Boxing in Japan The history of boxing in Japan began in 1854 when Matthew Perry landed at Shimoda, Shizuoka soon after the Convention of Kanagawa. At that time, American sailors often engaged in sparring matches on board their ships, with their fists wrapped i ...


References


External links

* *
Akira Yaegashi - CBZ Profile
, - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Yaegashi, Akira 1983 births Living people Mini-flyweight boxers Light-flyweight boxers Flyweight boxers World mini-flyweight boxing champions World light-flyweight boxing champions World flyweight boxing champions World Boxing Association champions World Boxing Council champions International Boxing Federation champions The Ring (magazine) champions Martial artists from Iwate Prefecture Boxing commentators Japanese male boxers